Chapter 7
Section 7 of Harper's Young People, Volume 1, Issue 26, April 27, 1880. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Harper's Young People, Volume 1, Issue 26, April 27, 1880 The Naughty Cuckoo and the Bobolinks by Agnes Carr Spring had come with its buds and blossoms, warm bright days and gentle showers,
and the old apple tree at the end of the garden was putting on its new spring dress of green leaves and tiny pink buds, which before long would open into sweet blossoms and still later turn into ripe golden fruit. when a pair of bobolinks came flying through the garden one fine morning house hunting, or rather looking for a nice place to build a nest and go to housekeeping. Here's a good spot, said the little husband, whose name was Robert,
perching on a limb of the old apple tree and poking his bill into a crotch formed by a crooked branch. so it is said Lenny his wife for the leaves will soon be out and hide the nest from sight and they began to chatter so fast
about the nice home they would have there that it sounded like nothing but bobbling bobbling spink spank spink so that two little girls who were playing with their dolls under the tree said
What a noise those bobolinks make! What are they chattering so about? Soon, however, they saw the little birds flying back and forth, back and forth, with bits of hair and straw in their bills, and then they said to one another, The bobolinks are building a nest, and they hung pieces of cotton and bunches of thread on the lower limbs of the tree
and watched to see Robert carry them off to weave into the outside of the nest while Linny made a soft lining of hair inside. And at last the little home was finished and three pretty eggs lay snugly inside. When one day, while Robert and Lenny had gone to stretch their wings by a short flight around the garden, an ugly old cuckoo who had seen the bobolinks flying in and out of the tree came and laid a big egg in the nest.
for cuckoos are lazy birds and never build houses for themselves, but steal places to lay their eggs and let somebody else take care of their children. Now Robert and Lenny had never been to school and could not count, so when they came back they did not notice that there were four eggs in the nest instead of three. And Lenny settled down on them quite happy while Robert sang a merry song to her
all about birds and flowers and brought her nice fat worms and flies to eat and was just the best little bobbling husband in the whole garden. And after a while, a faint peep was heard. The eggs all cracked, and out came four little blind birdies without any feathers, and ugly enough, you would have said. But their papa and mama thought them lovely. One, however, was as large as the other three put together and took up so much room that Lenny said,
Oh dear, we have made the nest too small. When the children grow larger, some will be crowded out. That is strange, said Robert, for it is the same size as the other bobolinks have built, and they have plenty of room. Yes, but just see how big one of the babies is, said Linny.
Just then, Robert saw the cuckoo on a tree nearby, winking one eye and laughing until her sides shook and exclaimed, I see how it is that old thief of a cuckoo has laid an egg in our nest. I will throw her ugly child out and she can look after it herself. And he made a dive for the little cuckoo, but Lenny caught him by his tail feathers, saying, No, no, poor little fellow, he will die if you throw him on the ground.
Let him stay until he gets too big for the nest. so the cuckoo stayed but he was a very bad bird for after a while when he and the little bobolinks
got their eyes open and had nice coats of feathers he would peck at his companions and take away all the best bits of bread and fattest worms
that their papa and mama brought them home for dinner and was so cross and greedy that Robert would have pitched him out on the grass if Lenny had not begged he might stay a little longer
and tried to make him behave better. The apple tree was now covered with pink and white blossoms which grew around the little nest and made it like a bower. And now the birdies were learning to fly and could go to the outer branches of the tree where they sat in a row while their father taught them how to sing.
Bobble-ink, bobble-ink, spink-spank-spink, sang Robert. And the little ones who could not speak plain all repeated, Bobble-ink, bobble-ink, pink-pank-pink, all except the biggest bird who would only say, Cuckoo! Cuckoo! in a harsh voice.
At last, one day Robert said, Now, children, you are old enough to leave the tree, and today you must begin to go a little way into the garden. Yes, said their mother, but take care and never sit on the ground, for there is a great yellow cat who will surely eat you up.
We will be very careful, said all the little bobolinks. After Billy, Bobby, and Jenny, as well as Cuckoo, had had their feathers brushed nice and smooth, they were sent out to dry their wings, but the cuckoo was stronger and could fly farther than the bobolinks.
Bobby flew over to the fence to see what was on the other side. And the first thing he spied was the yellow cat peeping slowly along. And she fixed her eyes right on him. He tried to fly back. But just then the cuckoo came behind and gave him a push,
which sent him fluttering to the ground. right in front of Mrs. Pussy. Poor Bobby gave himself up for a loss, but as the cat was about to spring on him, a great dog came bounding across the yard, which sent the cat scampering off in a hurry and saved Bobby, who hastened home as fast as his little wings could carry him. Pshaw, said the cuckoo.
I thought there would be one out of the nest, but there is the cat under a bush and Jenny is tilting on a twig just above without seeing her. So the naughty bird flew to the rose bush and said, Jenny, you look as if you were having a nice time.
I am, said Jenny, but don't come on this twig. It won't hold you. Oh, yes, it will, said Cuckoo, leaning on the slender spray which broke and fell with Jenny, who was too frightened to fly, and quickest lightning the cat seized and carried her off in her mouth. Ha, ha, ha, laughed Cuckoo.
There will be room in the nest now. But at that moment, the two little girls came out of the house, saw the cat with the bird, and made her drop Jenny on the grass. She was not much hurt, and they carried her gently back to the apple tree and gave her to her papa and mama. The cuckoo then went to look for Billy, but as he was passing the flower garden, he saw a juicy white angle worm lying in a bed of violets and, feeling hungry, stopped to take a little lunch. The worm was very nice, and Cuckoo enjoyed it very much.
When, just as he was swallowing the last morsel, the cat came stealing softly from under a woodpile, and thinking if birds could lunch on worms, she could lunch on birds. birds pounced upon Cuckoo and carried him off, and nothing more was ever seen of him except a few feathers scattered near the door of the woodshed.
These Billy saw and went home to tell the sad story. End of the Naughty Cuckoo and the Boba Lynx Robinson Crusoe Jap Fu Chung was a mariner bold Who sailed away in a junk
With vittles and drink in the hold And Japanese fans in his trunk And his ship one day when far away Ran aground with a terrible tonk He ceased his melodious ditty
About poor Robinson Crusoe and solemnly said, what a pity, and how in the world could she do so? But saying no more, he made for the shore, and was happy to get there, it blew so. A footprint of wonderful size, Fu Chung soon espied in the sand, and scarcely believing his eyes, for it closely resembled a hand.
He said, Can it be that the savage Fiji is the race that inhabits this land? Soon the dreaded Fiji man espied he, so he built him a hut far away, and he said, With my rabbits beside me, I shall have an agreeable stay. It was really too sad, no man Friday he had, for a ship took him off the next day. End of Robinson Crusoe Jap
End of Section 7
